Esquire wiring help

fatboi

The switch has all of the terminals on one side. I thought it would be set out the same, just all on one side

ICBM

fatboi said:

The switch has all of the terminals on one side. I thought it would be set out the same, just all on one side

No, not at all. That's also a crap switch... it may be best just to replace it with a CRL anyway.

fatboi

I just used the switch that was already in it. 
Being as I have the diagram already, I’ll order one of those style switches now.
Ebay?

fatboi

Ok, 3 years later...I’ve finally got around to wiring it with new pots and a genuine crl switch. I’m only getting sound in one position....and it’s not really a position! I’m only getting sound in between the 1st and 2nd position if I put the switch there and leave it. No sound at all in any of the three real positions.
The only things that differ from the diagram, are the change of wire colours as suggested above, due to it being a Kent Armstrong pickup. Also, the fact that my switch has the contacts on the opposite sides. (Top contact on mine is on the right)

Anyone any ideas??

Thanks!

ICBM

Can you post a pic of the actual switch you have with the wiring on it?

fatboi

I can try, can I use photobucket to upload to this site?

fatboi

Not the greatest picture but the push back wire gets in the way.
http://s54.photobucket.com/user/AREAFOTF/media/0040C4A4-FF51-4EAF-A859-11EE34ADDAD5_zpsafvre0b6.jpeg.html

ICBM

Looks like you've got it wired with the two sides swapped. This won't work because the rotor contacts are at the opposite ends on each side.

Wire it as in the diagram, don't worry which side has the contacts at the top and bottom.

fatboi

Thanks very much. I’ll try swapping the sides and see how it goes! 

fatboi

Ok, I’ve wired the switch the other way around now. I have nothing in neck position, but I do have sound in middle position and bridge position of the switch. Although with the switch in the bridge position, it’s MUCH quieter than in the middle position. 
Any help appreciated 

ICBM

Can you post a pic of what you've done? The diagram should be correct.

fatboi

I can post a pic,  it I’ve wired it exactly as you said, kept the sides the same as they are in the diagram. I’m wondering if perhaps the pickup being a Kent Armstrong...means that the wire colours are different to normal?

ICBM

Kent Armstrong is different from Duncan (which is what the diagram shows) - I thought Steve Robinson posted the conversion earlier...

If not - swap red and black. Red is the hot output, black and white are the coil split.

fatboi

Steve said to swap the black and the green. Perhaps this is where I’m going wrong? 

fatboi

Ok, just looked at a conversion chart for the wire colours. Looks like I might need to swap the red and black as you suggested. I’ll try this later and let you know. Thanks again for all the help.

ICBM

The colour combination thing is massively annoying - there are 24 possible combinations of 4-core wire colours, even assuming the same colours - and it sometimes seems that every one of them has been used by one maker or another!

As far as I know the first company to use 4-conductor cable was DiMarzio, so once their coding was established, everyone else should have followed that. Kent Armstrong uses the same wire order, but opposite magnetic polarity, which doesn't matter for what you're doing... but does if you're putting one of each in the same guitar.

fatboi

Ahhh I see. I’ll give it a go! Thanks

fatboi

Ok, I’ve swapped the colours around. I still have no sound in the front position. I have sound in both the middle and back positions, but the back is still a LOT quieter. I’m wondering if that’s just because it’s a split sound, and with it being a rail pickup rather than 2 separate ones, I can’t raise the single coil higher than the humbucker??

ICBM

No, the back position should be the loudest.

I’m afraid it’s going to be very hard to make any more progress from here. I would need to check the continuity and phasing of both pickup coils as well as the switch wiring. Do you know anyone locally who can do this for you?

fatboi

I’ll have a look around and see if I can find somewhere. Perhaps I’ll look out for another pickup also and give that a try. Then I can finally get onto painting it and putting foil in the cavities etc. Thanks for all your help